Maze (anime)
is a fantasy anime series featuring both sex-based humor and mecha themes that is based on an original light novel. The anime version was first released as a OVA then a full length TV series and finally as a sequel movie. The OVA and TV anime versions were licensed in the U.S. by Central Park Media and released on DVD under their "Software-Sculptors" label. The TV Series has aired on Comcast's "Anime Selects" On Demand Channel multiple times. The manga has not been released in the U.S. Plot A girl wakes up to find her room a mess. She realizes that she has partially lost her memory and all she can remember is that her name is Maze, and that she's now in a strange world. Here she meets a girl named Princess Mill who is on the run from the "Jaina Holy Group"; some creatures her house landed on just like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz. Maze also soon realizes that at night she transforms into a man. Maze and Mill meet more companions on their journey and become embroiled in a war to defeat Jaina and raise Mill back to the throne of Bartonia. Characters ;'Female Maze (Mei Ikaruga)' : The heroine of the story. She accidentally saves the life of Princess Mil when her house falls on Mil's would-be murderer (much as in the The Wonderful Wizard of Oz) upon falling into the fantasy world. After that she becomes extremely protective of Mill, who often shows intimate feelings or sexual advances toward Maze. She is a natural pacifist when the story begins. She has considerable magical ability but initially is much less effective at using them while a female. Maze is a fusion of Mei and her brother Akira who switch places at daybreak and nightfall. During the day Mei is dominant, while at night Akira is. Maze was brought from the real world as the Eraser to correct an imbalance. : ;'Male Maze (Akira Ikaruga)' : At night Maze turns into a male with a distinct personality from the daytime female form. He loves to fight, to the horror of the female form, who can be seen trapped in his head shouting at him wherever he tries to fight. In male form he has vastly increased magical powers. He is very sexually predatory towards almost any pretty girl he meets. Like the female Maze, his memories are mostly wiped or jumbled upon leaving the real world, though they start to recover over time. He is initially portrayed as a sex crazed, violent monster with little personality, but in time his personality emerges. In the real world he and his sister Mei shared a taboo love that led to him being outcast by their parents. In time both halves of Maze fall in love with each other again, even though they can only meet each other physically during sunrise and sunset. At the conclusion of the TV series, they choose to not go back to the real world, as this is the only world that they can share their love. The Japanese character for "Akira" can also be read as "Mei" and thus the name "Maze" comes from the term "Meis" as in "two Meis" : ;'Princess Mill Varna''' : Mill is the princess of one of the empires in the fantasy world (Either Bestool or Bartonian). She is very outgoing and childish, and seems to have abandonment issues over Maze. She is obsessed with both Mazes and often outlines her plans to marry Maze (but always with the female one), have Maze's children (with the male one), etcetera. Her family was killed when the Jaina holy group took over her family's territory. She also has the power to summon Dulgar, one of the greatest Demi-Armors (equivalent of a mech) in the entire world, which only Maze has the power to pilot. In the manga 'she' is actually a hermaphrodite. : ;"Whirlwind" Solude Schfoltzer : A demi-armor hunter and also a mercenary. She fights using long, black needles, and also possesses some phantom light (equivalent to magic) power, limited only to teleportation. She is also a lesbian, and often shows her attraction to Female Maze. In episode seven, she gets into a fight with a woman from her old dojo named "Lightning Rod" Medusa, and it is somewhat clear that they were old lovers until Medusa killed the master and then tried to kill Solude. During their final battle, Medusa purposely wasted her last crossbow bolt so that Solude could kill her, the reason being her lust for power had ruined the life she could have had and the life that the two of them could have had together. : ;Asterote ("Aster") Reighe : Solude's partner in crime. Although they are wildly different, they both enjoy a good time, a stiff drink, a beautiful woman, and have a general hate of authority, which brings them together. Aster also has a huge crush on Maze. He fights using a grossly oversized sword and is very, very strong. Aster's full name (Asterote) is the Japanese pronunciation of Astaroth. : ;Randy : Randy is a small fairy and the first person other than Mill to befriend Maze. She meets the pair when she they run into her village. She decides to join them in order to find the magical crystals representing the 5 "Forms" of Phantom Light (Including diamond, ruby, emerald, and topaz). she can often be found inside (Male or Female) Maze's shirt, waiting for the moment where her wisdom will be needed. : ;Rapier Sairus : Rapier is a woman knight and a servant of Mill's uncle and aunt. For most of her life, Rapier tried to convince others (And herself) that she was not a woman. Her father wanted a son so badly that when Rapier was born, he started telling her she was a man and cut her hair very short. It was only when the king accidentally walked in on her she was discovered to be a woman. It is hinted that Rapier showed intimate feelings for the king, going into deep remorse when the king was killed during a raid from Jaina. However, it is very likely Rapier is attracted to Man Maze, mentioning she would let him make a move on her after the Creator was finally defeated. It is also shown in the final episode credits Man Maze holding a partially undressed Rapier. Rapier is a master of the sword, able to cut down smaller Demi Armor with relative ease. : ;Ranchiki : Ranchiki is a young boy with a multi-hued hairdo who for most of his life has felt an unrequited love for Gold, the prince in disguise. He is an illuminator like Maze and also a demi-armor pilot, but he is not nearly as strong or as skilled as either Maze at these tasks. In one episode, Ranchiki pilots Dulgar when Gorgeous knocks Maze unconscious, but is quickly defeated. Despite her love for Gold, he falls in love with Man Maze at first sight and will often make moves on Woman Maze just because she is Maze (Often saying things such as "Given the situation, I'll settle for the woman Maze"). :Voiced by: Yuka Imai (Japanese), Echo (1st voice), and Mirm (2nd voice) (English) ;Dulgar : The Rom Demi Armor of the Gods. Only Mill is capable of summoning it, bio-linking it to her and Maze. It is an extremely powerful Demi Armor that is controlled by either Maze, although Man Maze is the better pilot. ;Gorgeous : A Narcissitic youth of Jaina who believes beauty is the ultimate power and that everything ugly must be destroyed. He is notoriously underhanded, resorting to trickery and dealbreaking to increase his own power. During one fight with Maze, he receives a scar on his face that eventually drives him to insanity. He completely fused with the evil Demi Armor Namchi (Supposedly resurrected from hell) in order to quench his thirst for power, but was killed by Dulgar and Man Maze. : ;Chic : Gorgeous's older brother. When Chic and Gorgeous were younger, there was a great strife and they both managed to narrowly escape with their lives. They would have died on their own, but Jaina took them in and cared for them. Chic vowed to give all he had to repay his debt to Jaina, even commits acts he full well knows are immoral or evil. Chic is often represented as moral yet misunderstood, and his character is often portrayed in a sympathetic light. Whereas Gorgeous' only goal was to gain power for himself, Chic is a genuinely noble person who fights for the wrong side. After Gorgeous is killed by Maze, Chic becomes angered and battles the female Maze to avenge his brother's death. Though Maze doesn't want to fight him, in the end, she ultimately kills Chic. His name is always mispronounced as "Chick" instead of the correct "Sheek". : ;The Creator : The leader of Jaina and the one responsible for the death of Mill's family. The Creator is a being much like Maze, except the change from man to woman happens every few minutes. Also, the Creator's male form is a hideous old man (that resembles Emperor Palpatine from Star Wars) while the woman form is a beautiful dark haired young woman. In truth, the Creator is the ancestor to Maze, and was foretold to be destroyed by Maze, who was deemed the Eraser. In the final battle, the Creator revealed to be part of a gigantic monstrous Demi Armor and absorbed up Dulgar with Maze inside. But in the end, the Creator was killed by Maze once and for all. : References *Ross, Carlos. "Maze". T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews. Retrieved October 19, 2010. *Ward, Paul. "Maze Bakunetsujiku (Maze Mega Burst Space)". Anime News Network. November 8, 2001. Retrieved October 19, 2010. *"Maze: Mega Burst Space". IGN. October 3, 2000. Retrieved October 19, 2010. *Ross, Carlos; Carpenter, Christina; Gaede, Eric. "Maze TV". T.H.E.M. Anime Reviews. Retrieved October 19, 2010. External links * * * Category:Anime series Category:Anime of 1996 Category:Anime of 1997 Category:Anime of 1998 Category:Fantasy anime and manga Category:Kadokawa Sneaker Bunko Category:Transgender and transsexual-related anime and manga Category:Shōnen manga Category:Central Park Media Category:Anime films Category:Anime OVAs Category:Light novels ja:MAZE☆爆熱時空 tl:Maze (anime)